HYC demands SOP for timely release of funds for MGNREGS projects

HYC demanded streamlining of procedures and convergence with MLA scheme to enhance rural development

In a bid to bolster the effective implementation of projects under the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (MGNREGS), the Hynniewtrep Youth Council (HYC) has called upon the state government to establish Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) to ensure prompt release of funds for material components for the projects within a span of six months.

The demand was presented during a meeting of a HYC delegation with the Minister of Community and Rural Development, AT Mondal, where the HYC voiced concerns about delayed fund disbursement hampering project execution.

Highlighting the urgency of the matter, Roy Kupar Synrem, the General Secretary of HYC, asserted that the state government must devise modalities that ensure the release of funds earmarked for materials within a maximum period of six months. Synrem further suggested that failure to meet this timeline should result in the concerned department being held accountable, and compelled to pay interest to the pertinent Village Employment Councils (VECs).

Numerous VECs operating in the Khasi-Jaintia Hills regions have reported significant delays in receiving funds earmarked for material components, an issue that has cast a shadow over the seamless execution of projects under the MGNREGS. In some instances, VECs in certain Community & Rural Development (C&RD) Blocks have waited for funds for up to two years, disrupting the program’s success in the state.

Robertjune Kharjahrin, President of HYC, speaking on the matter, stated, “The first issue we discussed centres around the several complaints from various VECs in Khasi-Jaintia Hills regions, that releasing of the funds related to the material components while implementing projects under the scheme takes a lot of time.”

In a proactive move to address the challenges at hand, the HYC also urged the minister to expedite the release of all pending funds to VECs that have been deprived of financial support for over half a year. In a bid to amplify rural development, the HYC suggested the amalgamation of the Member of Legislative Assembly (MLA) scheme with the MGNREGS, propelling a more profound impact on the state’s hinterlands.

Kharjahrin elaborated on this proposal, affirming, “We suggest that the Government should come up with a policy/legislation that not less than 50% of the fund from the MLA Scheme should be implemented by way of convergence with MGNREGS. This will ensure not just 100 days guaranteed work to job card holders but it will increase up to 110 days or more guaranteed workdays and also bring more meaningful development to the villages and towns.”

The HYC emphasized the imperative establishment of the Meghalaya Community Rural Development Services and Meghalaya Community Rural Engineering Services to bolster the overall infrastructure and development framework in the state’s rural areas.

Reflecting on past efforts, Robertjune Kharjahrin noted, “In 2022 we met with former C&RD Minister Hamletson Dohling to inquire about the 2018 proposal that was sent by the C&RD department. The proposal suggested that the C&RD department should have its own staff, including engineers, and that Block Development Officers (BDOs) should not be seconded.”

Kharjahrin affirmed that the council received assurances from the minister regarding a resolution to this issue.

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